Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - The worst part of having no job?

Not being able to buy all the cool lineups for 2010 (esp BMC & Cinelli). :(:(:(:(:mad::mad::(

http://www.bmc-racing.com/fileadmin/user_upload/images/bikes/MY_2009_Details/SLX01_7.jpg

http://rocknrollinfixieriders.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/cinelli_mash_bike_20091.jpg

Not being able to ride to work?? That would suck too.

I hear you about not being able to buy new products and there is a lot of cool new stuff.
You live in Portland and I hear used bikes cost more there than anywhere on the planet.
Have you tried flipping a few? Is it possible there to find any to flip?
Just curious.

Have bike yet no travel to the non-existent job for me. Getting very frustrated only having one bike!

Yes, used bikes in Portland pay a very strange tax. Maybe the "vintage" "urban-cool-hipster" tax. I avoid used bikes (shops and CL) for this very reason. I'd rather have a BMC Race Master SLX anyway...

work as a messenger...better than nothing...

I see some dude rolling around manhattan on that Cinelli all the time.....I drool

Finding work as a messenger in Portland is impossible.

I have no idea what portland is like

A mini-wannabe-version of NYC in some respects. At least when it comes to the messenger thing.

NYC is a mini-wannabee version of NYC too. Especially when it comes to "messengers".

that's cinelli's 2009 mash fyi

this is 2010:

http://www.hypebeast.com/image/2009/09/mash-cinelli-benny-gold-1.jpg

I hate having a job. I'm jealous of those who don't have to work and have more time for fun.

I hate having a job. I'm jealous of those who don't have to work and have more time for fun.

Try being unemployed for awhile. See how you like it.

Try being unemployed for awhile. See how you like it.

It's actually pretty fun if done correctly.

It's actually pretty fun if done correctly.

I didn't get the how to on it. Do you have any pointers?

that's cinelli's 2009 mash fyi

this is 2010:

http://www.hypebeast.com/image/2009/09/mash-cinelli-benny-gold-1.jpg

LOVE this bike. I guarantee you can find a job no matter what it is. It's better to work a fast food job for minimum wage than it is to just sit around being a waste of air IMO. I hate deadbeats

I'm trying to get to the point where I can drop my 'real' job and survive on teaching drum lessons and tutoring math classes at the local schools. Then i'd be able to ride to work every day... sigh... I'd love that.

Not having a job sucks. I agree. In my own life it causes me to bum from my freinds and family and makes me feel like a failure. I just want to be able to sustain myself, job or no job.

^ you say that now, but when your old you will regret it.
Having retirement money is always a plus....

if that is the worst part, consider yourself lucky.

For some reason that is well beyond my comprehension it is so much easier to get a job when you have a job. To that end, I'd honestly suggest trying to get a job doing anything. Anything at all. A few moons ago when my children were younger I took a year off to establish a relationship with them. I was working insane hours at the time and while I didn't burn out it was breaking my heart. Once I felt I was on solid ground with the kids (about 15 months later) I decided to get back to it. It was a bit of a shock when I experienced problems getting back into things. I ended up taking a job that to say I was over-qualified for would be like saying The Pacific Ocean was a nice little place to take a dip. But, a few months of doing that and I landed back as if I never left. I think we carry ourselves differently when we want different things but we don't need them.

Try being unemployed for awhile. See how you like it.

well, putting things more in perspective, I'm a full time student, and have to work during the semester and full time during the summer :(

This summer I was on strike for 6 weeks. I had zero income during that time so I had to carefully ration my money on only instant noodles and beer. I remember riding around thinking "back pressure! back pressure!" whenever I had to stop as if I skidded through my tires or used up my brake pads I didn't know if I'd be able to replace them.

Nonetheless, I did ride like 300 miles a week during that time, so I actually kind of had a blast. Couldn't care less about new bikes honestly

^ you say that now, but when your old you will regret it.
Having retirement money is always a plus....

Very vaild point. I definately don't see retirement as a goal or an acheivement. I'd love to work doing something that I love that I could work late into my life. I know its very optimistic and at some point not practical or realistic. Still trying to hash that out though.

I got ride a car, so I could buy more bike stuff. Love commuting to work. Smiling at all the poor fools enslaving themselves to their Autos.

worst part about not having a job is more likely not being able to pay rent...

I got ride a car...


um...

I used to think saving for retirement was cool, but then I realized that I'll be too old to enjoy not working. I'd rather not work now and ride my bike all day and work when I'm old.

I would think not being able to eat, pay the rent and pay bills would be right on top of the list of "the worst part of not having a job." :innocent:

I used to think saving for retirement was cool, but then I realized that I'll be too old to enjoy not working. I'd rather not work now and ride my bike all day and work when I'm old.

Riiiiiiiiiiight, lets see how well you work when your body doesn't do the things you want it to do and does the things you don't want it to. :twitchy: Youth is indeed wasted on the young!

Riiiiiiiiiiight, lets see how well you work when your body doesn't do the things you want it to do and does the things you don't want it to. :twitchy: Youth is indeed wasted on the young!

Work doesn't have to be with your hands, if you orchestrate well, you can depend on your mind.

Also not having a job does not neccessarily mean not being albe to eat or have a place to live. There are lots of ways to live minus money. I could send you some interesting articles and whatnot if interested.

When it comes to old age, you can't depend on anything really. That's the whole reason that saving for retirement is important. Senior moments, dementia, Alzheimer's, any litany of physical diseases with huge bills.

The only good job you can use in your old(old) age is teaching, and best scenario of that is being a professor with tenure at a college or university, but you are going to need a PhD for that. I guess you could work at walmart, but think of how depressing that would be.

I guess you could work at walmart, but think of how soul crushing that would be.

fixed

Work doesn't have to be with your hands, if you orchestrate well, you can depend on your mind.

Also not having a job does not neccessarily mean not being albe to eat or have a place to live. There are lots of ways to live minus money. I could send you some interesting articles and whatnot if interested.

Please do, I'm very interested. :thumb:
BTW, don't depend on your mind, that can sometimes fail you in old age too.

Health is the most important. And that sadly, diminishes greatly with age. Didn't really grasp how much getting old sucks until I became a practicing intern at the health clinic at school. Day in and day out it's old people with a variety of health problems. The saddest ones have the simplest problems that we (youngins) take for granted every day. Makes me happy about being able to just ride my bike!

If you can afford it, nothing wrong with being unemployed for a few months. It's probably good for you.

I was laid off a while back, and between unemployment, selling on Amazon and occasional temp work, my bills were covered. Had plenty of time to ride, read, play music, hang out. I mean, we didn't take any island vacations, had to be kind of frugal, but I had a really freakin great spring and summer this year.

I mean, if I had kidshousecar to think about that might be different, but if you can take the time, take it!

i have a job and i can't afford either of the bikes these idiots are whining about...

i have a job and i can't afford either of the bikes these idiots are whining about...


its about priorities.

plenty of cyclists i know would like nicer bikes but always complain they'll never be able to afford the $2000 bike.

yet they go to the hipster coffee hangout everyday @ $4.39 a latte.

$4.39 x 7days = $30.73/wk
x 30 = $122.92/month
x 12 = $1475.04/yr

The problem about a $2000 bike is you're worried about it every time you take it everywhere. Hell, I'm worried about locking my $600 bike most of the time :P

how about this. something worse than not having a job.


not being able to get a job. :-(
(i'm 15...)

The worst part of having no job, unequivocally, is not having medical insurance. Especially when you're into activities with a higher-than-average chance of injury.

The worst part of having no job, unequivocally, is not having medical insurance. Especially when you're into activities with a higher-than-average chance of injury.

Amen! Between Mountain Biking, Riding Fixed, and Running the S**T (kayaking) I'm just waiting for an accident. But, I just proposed to my girlfriend who happens to be a doctor....she told me to turn down a job offer because I would have to work weekend which would cut into our kayaking....nice.

The worst part of having no job, unequivocally, is not having medical insurance. Especially when you're into activities with a higher-than-average chance of injury.

Anyone who has gone a period of time and gotten tooth problems or a serious case of the flu knows this is a serious setback and usually results in the problem being ignored and enduring great discomfort/pain/suffering/etc. Not to mention those who endure more serious medical conditions while uninsured.

Sigh. national healthcare? Not the place for that discussion lol.

Life without money.

If you want to talk about this in detail, please PM me. Here are some links that might be of interest on the topic. Warning: possible spiritual and socialist themes within.

Some links:
Shane Claiborne http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shane_Claiborne
the simple way http://www.thesimpleway.org/
jpusa http://www.jpusa.org/
Life without Money
http://www.zenzibar.com/Articles/moneyless.htm
men.style.com/details/features/landing?id=content_9817
http://www.livingwithoutmoney.tv/

Thanks man, going to read all of that.

The worst part of having no job, unequivocally, is not having medical insurance. Especially when you're into activities with a higher-than-average chance of injury.

Yeah, +1 to that. Sure it sucks not being able to buy fancy bike parts, but the lack of health care is #1.

I've got to get a benefited job soon...I could get a crap job to buy more bike parts but that probably would not even cover the amount my parents are paying for my health insurance since I feel bad having them pay for it now that I have graduated (they are self employed and have to buy private insurance plans so its not like I stop being covered now that I am not a student...so long as they keep paying out the roof for my plan)

I have no idea what portland is like

Downtown Portland, and across the Willamette River in North East, East, and South East Portland, the roads have been overrun by hipsters on fixies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hipster_%28contemporary_subculture%29). Most of them know little if anything about track bikes, and ride them because they are cool. Typically these bikes are old mass-market bike boom 10-speeds that have been spraypainted, had the brakes removed, and been converted to a single speed by welding up a freewheel (or some other shady backyard method). Therefore these bikes are now "fast" but by no means safe, and accidents happen all the time.

This has led to a ridiculous run-up in the price of used bicycles. 1970s Peugeots that a few years ago were worth $10 are now suddenly worth $100 in exactly the same condition. (If there was a way I could short sell this trend I would... there should be an ETF for hipster bikes.) Anyway, the hipsters typically move away after realizing that:

a) there are no jobs in Portland for people with art/history/literature degrees (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124242099361525009.html);
b) there are no jobs here at all (http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/10/19/daily9.html);
c) it rains all the time (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland_Oregon#Climate); and
d) mom stopped sending checks (http://www.hipsterhandbook.com/work.html)

The problem is, California, the Midwest, etc. are continually cranking out hipsters who want to move to Portland... sigh.

edit: here is a followup (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703787204574442912720525316.html) to the first article

Downtown Portland, and across the Willamette River in North East, East, and South East Portland, the roads have been overrun by hipsters on fixies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hipster_%28contemporary_subculture%29) . Most of them know little if anything about track bikes, and ride them because they are cool. Typically these bikes are old mass-market bike boom 10-speeds that have been spraypainted, had the brakes removed, and been converted to a single speed by welding up a freewheel (or some other shady backyard method). Therefore these bikes are now "fast" but by no means safe, and accidents happen all the time.

This has led to a ridiculous run-up in the price of used bicycles. 1970s Peugeots that a few years ago were worth $10 are now suddenly worth $100 in exactly the same condition. (If there was a way I could short sell this trend I would... there should be an ETF for hipster bikes.) Anyway, the hipsters typically move away after realizing that:

a) there are no jobs in Portland for people with art/history/literature degrees (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124242099361525009.html);
b) there are no jobs here at all (http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/10/19/daily9.html);
c) it rains all the time (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland_Oregon#Climate); and
d) mom stopped sending checks (http://www.hipsterhandbook.com/work.html)

The problem is, California, the Midwest, etc. are continually cranking out hipsters who want to move to Portland... sigh.

Ha! Sounds on point from my observations of a recent trip to Portland to visit my cousins.

Had my wages cut 20% for 6 months, then laid off (11 weeks now). 5 kids -- 3 at home, 2 in college, mortgage, car insurance, working half time at a low-wage job; take-home pay (with unemployment) down 55%. No health insurance, kid had a CT scan at the ER, out $4K. Not having fun. Did get to ride the bike a little more at first, but now the weather has turned and it gets dark pretty early.

No wonder people hustle and participate in the underground economy during these tough economic times :(

Yeah I think I'm gonna get into the coke game to get me one of the new MASH bikes.

That's a sound idea eh? hhahaha

Whoever posted those articles, thanks. I'm reading them right now.